Day 5: Late-morning walk to Coyote Springs, Mojave National Preserve
I wake up hot in the tent from the morning sun, peel off my sleeping bag and open the windows at 8h30. A lot of flies and a few yellow jackets are buzzing around my tent, especially when I'm boiling water for coffee and soup, so I have to keep the screens closed.
Breakfast is instant miso soup with dulse, two cups of coffee, granola, tamari almonds and dried apricots. Not much different there!
Before setting out on my longer afternoon hike to Bighorn Basin, I walk over to Coyote Springs, a half mile up the road from my campsite, to explore a little.
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Date: April 27, 2008, 10h00
Size: 14 items
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The road to Coyote Springs from my campsite is really sandy in places
I considered riding my bike to Coyote Springs, but it's probably easier to walk.
Date: April 27, 2008, 11h21
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Along the road, I see a few butterflies of a sort that I haven't seen yet on this trip
This butterfly would be well-camouflaged in a yellow-flowering plant due to its lemon-lime colour.
Date: April 27, 2008, 11h28
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1/3 mile up the main road, I turn down the short road that dead-ends at Coyote Springs
This area obviously gets some visitation, judging by the tire tracks around here.
Date: April 27, 2008, 11h32
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The road ends at a cul-de-sac and a campsite overlooking Coyote Springs
I like this campsite just as much as where I'm camped 1/2 mile down the road. Maybe next time...
Date: April 27, 2008, 11h35
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I begin my walk through the Coyote Springs area and come across these two dry cisterns
I don't see any water yet, so I'll walk upstream a bit to see what I find.
Date: April 27, 2008, 11h37
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Ah, water at Coyote Springs!
It's not much, and it's rather green, but I suppose it would do in an emergency (if run through a water filter).
Date: April 27, 2008, 11h39
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Butterflies like this moist sand along the edge of the drying-up creek bed
I've seen a dozen or two butterflies in this immediate area. There's a lot of bug life around here, and some birds too, including quite a few mourning doves.
Date: April 27, 2008, 11h42
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I walk upstream to see if there's any more water here at Coyote Springs
I find that it's easier to walk across the clear area on the other side of the creek than up through the brush in the creek bed.
Date: April 27, 2008, 11h45
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Desert dudleya growing in the rocks not far from the creek bed
Date: April 27, 2008, 11h51
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This area is almost dry right now, but is apparently a large pool of water during the wetter months
I can feel some cool air emanating from this patch of dry grass and shrivelled algae, so there may a bit of water or moisture left in there somewhere.
Date: April 27, 2008, 11h53
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Pool of water at Coyote Springs
I come across a number of trickles and small pools of water further up the stream bed of Coyote Springs, most of them a bit stagnant and muddy like this one.
Date: April 27, 2008, 12h08
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One flower that I'm surprised to find here at Coyote Springs is blue-eyed grass (sisyrinchium bellum)
This plant in the lily family is native to the San Francisco Bay Area, and I've planted a few in my garden, but I didn't realize that it is also native to the Mojave Desert.
Date: April 27, 2008, 12h10
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I climb up an adjacent boulder pile at Coyote Springs to start my walk back to the tent 1/2 mile down the road
Camp is more or less to the right of the small hill protrudes from the left.
Date: April 27, 2008, 12h21
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I arrive back at my tent and prepare my backpack for the afternoon hike up to an old mine in the Bighorn Basin area
Continue to Day 5 afternoon: Round-trip hike (5.25 miles) to an old mine site in the Bighorn Basin hills, Granite Mountains, Mojave National Preserve.
Date: April 27, 2008, 13h12
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